Ohio State at Penn State odds, picks and predictions

The 4th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten) and 3rd-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions (7-0, 4-0) meet Saturday at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pa. Kickoff is scheduled for noon ET (FOX). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s college football odds around the Ohio State vs. Penn State odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.

Ohio State edged Nebraska 21-17 last week despite being a 25-point favorite as the Under (48.5) cashed. The Buckeyes might have been caught looking ahead to this titanic matchup, the 2nd top-5 battle since Oct. 12 for Ohio State.

Penn State picked up a 28-13 win on the road against Wisconsin, cashing as a 6.5-point favorite as the Under (46.5) connected. The Nittany Lions have won all 7 games, but Penn State is just 1-3 against the spread (ATS) in the past 4 games and 2-4 ATS across the previous 6 outings. The Under is 4-1 in the previous 5 contests.

Ohio State has won 7 straight meetings in this series since a 24-21 win by Penn State Oct. 22, 2016. Despite the win streak, the Nittany Lions are an impressive 6-2 ATS in the past 8 in the series, with the Under going 5-1 in the past 6 and 7-2 across the past 9 meetings.

– US LBM Coaches Poll: Conducted by the American Football Coaches Association and USA TODAY Sports

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Ohio State at Penn State odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list of college football odds. Lines last updated at 7:20 a.m. ET.

• Moneyline (ML): Ohio State -160 (bet $160 to win $100) | Penn State +135 (bet $100 to win $135)
• Against the spread: Ohio State -3 (-115) | Penn State +3 (-105)
• Over/Under (O/U): 47.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)

Ohio State at Penn State picks and predictions

Prediction

Ohio State 26, Penn State 20

Moneyline

If you’re a bit on the conservative side, OHIO STATE (-160) isn’t priced out of line if you simply want to pick a winner and not fool around with the points.

Penn State (+135) heads into this game with no blemishes on the record, but it has no real marquee games on the schedule so far. The team’s best wins are against Illinois at home, as well as road games against USC and Wisconsin. USC is a .500 team with 4 losses, and the Nittany Lions needed OT to win 33-30 Oct. 12.

Against the spread

Back OHIO STATE -3 (-115) at Happy Valley in this noon time kickoff.

The Buckeyes have already been tested in a road game at Oregon, falling 32-31 in a narrow setback in a marquee battle in Eugene 3 weeks ago. Ohio State was sleepwalking through last week’s Nebraska game, perhaps sneaking a peek ahead at this road trip.

Over/Under

UNDER 47.5 (-115) is the lean, but only go with a half-unit play at most.

The Under has cashed in 3 of the past 4 games for Ohio State, and it has allowed 17 or fewer points in 6 of 7 games to date.

For the Nittany Lions, the Under has cashed in 4 of the past 5 outings, while going a perfect 3-0 in the past 3 home contests.

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